Ele ctric battery



J. E. DUNN.

ELECTRIC BATTERY.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 2a. 1916.

Patented Oct. 14,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I Tlql $5 akbozuaa J. E. DUNN.

ELECTRIC BATTERY.

APPLICATION HLED SEPT. 23. I9I6.

Patented 0m. 14,1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

5 vwewro'o unrrnn snares Parana carton.

JAY E. DUNN, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO NOVO MANUFACTURINGCOMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC BATTERY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

rutaven UN]. 14:, Fiat.

Application filed September 23, 1916. Serial No. 121,742.

Fig. 10 is a modified form of blank for To all whom it may concern Be itknown that I, J AY E. DUNN, a citizen of the United States, residing atBrooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Electric Batteries, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in electric batteries;particularly batteries of the type employed to supply current forincandescent lamps in torches and flashlights.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a vessel or containerfor the chemical substances 'by whose action upon the electrodes of thebattery electric energy is produced; the container being of suchconstruction as will not only enable it to be easily, quickly andcheaply manufactured, but also permit the merits of the battery whenlinished to be enhanced, and the durability and efliciency thereof to bemeasurably increased.

The above and other objects of my invention will appear from thefollowing description, taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings; whereon several embodiments of my invention are illustrated.This disclosure, however, is to be construed as explanatory only; andembodiments of my invention other than those actually shown herein mayof course be used; to the full ex tent indicated by the general meaningsof the terms in which the claims appended hereto are expressed. I

On said drawings:

Figure 1 is a view of a blank out of which the body or main portion ofmy improved container is made;

Fig. 2 is a side view when the blank has been worked to cause it toassume the required shape;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, partly in section, of my container, showingboth the main por ti on and the bottom Fig. is an end view of the mainportion:

of the container;

Fig. 5 is a. view, similar to Fig. 2, of a modified form of body for acontainer;

Fig. 6 is a view, similar to Fig. 8, of the body referred to inconnection with Fig. 5, with the bottdm of the containerj added.

Fig. 7 is an end elevation of the modified container body; I

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the bottom of the container Fig. 9 is a sideelevation thereof;

making the body or main portion of a con tamer;

Fig. 11 is a side elevation, partly'in section of this modified blank,after shaping the same;

Fig. 12 is a similar view of the same, with the bottom added; I

Fig.1?) is an end View of the construction shown in side elevation onFig. 11; and

Fig. l t is a longitudinal sectional view of a battery including mycontainer.

The same numerals of reference identify the same parts throughout.

I wish to state at the outset that heretofore containers for electricbatteries for flash lights and the like have been generally made bysoldering a tubulaiubody of conducting material to a bottom of similarmaterial; whereby such containers have been composed entirely of metal.Such a method is comparatively expensive; requiring relatively largequantities of metal, and entailing a number of difiicult operations toget the parts permanently assembled; and it has the further disadvantagethat the bottom is not always united to the body in such a way as tomake the container perfectly leakproof. In the practice of my invention,such objections are largely obviated; and at the same time I securecertain important advantages which are clearly set forth subsequently inthis specification.

After being worked in such fashion, it will preferably be cylindricahwith its opposite edges 2 overlapping; whereby it may serve as the mamportion of a container in which the chemicals of an electric battery arere- I ceived. In the embodiment of my invention portrayed. in Figs. 2, 3and 4, the metal,

blank 1 is made cylindrical only; butin the modification depicted inFigs. 5, 6 and 7,

the blank is Sub ected to a further operation to cause one terminal edgeto extend inward, making a rim or flange 3; In both these forms of myimprovement, an impel;

forate wad t of insulating material; for example, paper, cardboard orother substance, fibrous or non-fibrous, is employed to close-one end ofthe main portion 1, and constitute the bottom of the container.

The wad 4 in. any case will be locatedadjacent one end of the mainportion 1, and preferably as near'to the terminal edge of the same as itcan be placed. In the form of my invention illustrated inFigs; 2, 3 and4:, this wad will be'flush with the terminal edge; while in themodification shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the wad will not be quite flushwith the terminal edge, but will engage the rim 3 and abutagainst'the'inner face thereof. I make the wad 4 of such size that itsperiphery will be encircled snugly by the main portion of the containerwhen the wad is properly disposed therein; thus giving, a fairly tightfit; and this wad is also treated'so as to coat it; and, if possible,impregnate it, as can easily be done when the wad is of a fibrousnature, with an insulat ing substance indicated at 5 in Figs. 8 and 9;for a'purpose which will be explained fully hereinafter.

The overlapping edges 2 of the portion 1 are secured by soldering or inany other practicable way. If desired, these edges may be fastened byclenching, and soldering dispensed with, will be understood. When thebottom is to be applied, the wad r is inserted at one end of the portion1 and pushed through to the other with a'rammer; and when this operationis being performed, the portion 1 should first be set ,upright on a flatsurface, so that the wad can easily and quickly be forced to assume its"correct position.

Figs. 10, 11, 12 and 13 present another form of in y improved container.This form is made exactly like that shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, with thedifference that the metal blank 1 is stamped out so that it has teeth orpoints 6 at one end. After the blank is made as in Fig. 10, it is shapedlike a cylinder and its overlapping edges 2 secured together; and theteeth 6 are bent over, as shown in Figs. 11, 12 and 13 in the samen'1an1'1er as 'the rim 3. Usually the wad 4:, which is illustrated inposition in the portion 1 on Fig. 13, is inserted into the main portionin this mmlification of my container, and the teeth 6 bent over, at asingle operation; and when this container is completed, the wad will beadjacent the end of the main portion, as in the preceding forms.

When any of the forms of container embodying my invention is finished;as by shaping the main portion 1 and adding the wad 4, it may be chargedin the usual way. As seen in Fig. A. the portion 1 constitutes one ofthe v \ctrodes of the battery; and a ine'i'n'ber including a rod ofcarbon 7 with a cap 8, on titutes the-other. "lhis member will becentrally located in the container,

of manganese dioxid and graphite, moistened with a' solution of ammoniumchlorid or other suitable ingredients; thiscore being provided with acovering of cloth 10, se-

. cured by a cord 11. Between the core 9 and the inside surface of theportion 1 is an 1nsulating ring, such as a rubber band 12, designed-tohold the core 9 out of contact with the portion 1 and thus prevent ashort circuit in the battery. The space wherein the band 12 is placed isfilled with a paste 18, containing ammonium chlorid and other compounds,to react upon the ingredients of the core 9 and give the chemicalreactions that will generate an electromotive force between theelectrodes 1 and 7. Above the core 9 and paste 13 will be a layerof Wax14:; and over the wax 14 is a perforated closure of paper orotherinsulation 15; A disk 16, of paper or the like, is also put intothe container on the wad 4, before the core 9 and paste 13 areintroduced into the portion 1.

In manufacturing the battery, the core 9 with the member 7 inside it andthe band 12 surrounding it, is inserted into the contai'ner first; andthe paste 13 is next sup-' plied. The container is then subjected to theaction of heat, as'by putting it into a bath of hot water; whereby thepaste 13 is coagulated and thickened. I then pour in the paraffin '14,slip the closure 15 over the member 7, and affix the cap 8 thereto.

The insulating substance or plastic 5 on the wad -1 preferably includesparaffin and rosin. During the hot water bath, the paraflin is softenedand becomes partly fluid; whereby it is enabled to fill every minutecrack or opening between the inner face of the portion 1 and theperiphery of'the wad. As a result, the paraiiin acts as a seal; making aperfect leakproof joint between the portion 1 and the wad f and therosin, which also becomes plastic, has the effect of making thecontacting faces of the portion 1 and the wad a engage and stick tightlytogether. Hence the wad not only closes up the one end of the portion 1in such a way as to obviate the risk of loss of the contents by leakage,by reason of the presence of the paraiiin; but it also, by the action ofthe rosin, is enabled to resist being pushed either into or out of theportion 1, in the form shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4, and into the portion 1in the forms of my invention illustrated in Figs. 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, and13; the rim 3 and teeth 6 holding the wad against displacement outwardof the portion 1.

From the foregoing, the practical utility aeiaees or? my invention willbe apparent. y using the insulating wad d, I am enabled to save metaland to assemble the parts of the container in a quicker, easier andcheaper manner; since the preparation. of the wad with thelnsulatingsubstance thercon and its insertion into the main portion of thecontainer involve less labor and expense than the making of a metal disk1nd the soldering oi the latter to the main Fin tnerrnore, the purposeoi the substance including the parafin and rosin,

or equivalent substances which I may of course employ, always gives atight, leak proof connection. between the portion 1 and the wad e;because of the eiit'ect of the hot I Water bath in which the battery isdipped; :and this tight, leakprooi' connection 13 not dependent upon thecarefulness of the operative, as is the case when a metal. disk solderedportion. 1 by hand. Hence the dcsir d result infalli'bly obtained, no

ter how ignorant or careless a work- 212111 may be; and a defectivecontainer cannot be produced. lWhen metal bottoms, soldered totheportion 1, are used instead of the wads l, the number of containersthat are detective and leaky is from five t ten per cent.,-depending on.the individual worlnnan. i

The importance of obviating leakage is due to the fact that leakagewould not only mean loss of the contents of thebattery; also would becapable of giving rise to action and possible short-circuiting betweenadjacent cells or batteries when a number thereof is used. Thesebatteriesare side by side in a'casing, with insheets between them. oughbottom of the container cothe insulation c uld be in danger n'egratingand allowing the escaping to creep from one container to a flooring one;with consequent impairof the action of the battery and reduction ofoutput.

"l ,cztlz y n'wans of my invention; and in addition lace a battery ofsuperior merit, ca-

,a neof higher efficiency, greater durabihig v, and onger life under allconditions oi SNTIQC.

particular chemical substances used to make up the core 9 and thefpaste" 13 surrcumfling it are of course no part of my ion; asthey maybe any of the well known compounds or -miXtures employed in bat ies ofthis character. d: further allow .myself the same freedom of choice Ifleakage drawbacks are entirely overcome with regard to the materialsused in, the

My improved battery container may of course be made in any size, and thenumber of teeth 6 may be varied at will. Likewise, my. container may beutilized for batteries used for other purposes than in flashlights.

Having described my invention, what I believe to be new and desire tosecure and protect by Letters Patent of the United States is l. Acontainer for an electricbattery comprising a main portion ofelectrically conductive material and an imperforate Wad of insulatingmaterial in said portion adjacent one end thereof, said wad constitutingthe bottom of the container, said portion extending inward adjacent saidend to retain said wad against displacement therethrough.

2. A container for an electric battery comprising a tubular main portionof electrically conducting material, an imperforate wad of insulatingmaterial in said portion, having its periphery engaged thereby, said wadbeing located adjacent one end of the main portion and constituting thebottom of the container, and an insulating substance coating the wad andengaging the wad and the main portion, said substance including aningredient to make a leakproof joint between the Wad and the mainportion, and an adhesive to secure the wad and the main portiontogether.

3. A container for an electric battery comprising atubular main portionof electrically conducting material, said portion having one terminaledge provided with inward extending teeth, and an imperforate wad ofinsulating material in said portion abutting said teeth and constitutingthe bottom of the container.

e. A container for an electric battery comprising a tubular main portionof electrically, conductive material, and an imperferate wad ofinsulating material in said portion, adjacent one end, and constitutingthe bottom of said container, said tubularmain portion extending inwaradjacent said end to engage the wad and o prevent displacement of thewad through said end, and means engaging the wad in the main portion tomake a leak-proof joint between the wad and the main portion and tosecure the wad and the main portion together.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this18th day of

